Friday 10/27

Grade Level News for 7th Grade

Update from the Principal's Desk:

Parents and Guardians,

The first quarter is behind us, and our students seem to be thriving. Please take a minute to check your students MISSING WORK in parent portal, as well as the upcoming tests and project dates in the newsletter below. You will also find the mid-term schedule and mid-term information for December in the newsletter.

We hope that the online learning day went well for you and your students. Based on PTO feedback, we tried to share with parents what the online expectations are in order to help you assist your children. We are always looking for additional ways to improve, and we have listened to feedback to make our next online learning day even cleaner.

Have a great week! Many fall festivals and activities are under way, and I hope you are able to enjoy family and friends during this time.

JA Finance Park 7th Grade Field Trip Permission Forms - PLEASE READ - These forms are due November 3rd! Please note that there is a front and a back to this form. This form is required for your child to participate in the trip. We would love some more parents to volunteer to join us on this experience as well. The trip for your student will happen on either 12/5, 12/6, or 12/7. Please contact your child's Social Studies teacher if you have questions or to notify them of your interest to participate as a parent volunteer. 👏Thank you! JA Discovery Center Site

Upcoming Dates

10/16 - Club Pictures
10/17 - Football Playoff game
10/18 - Family Connect Night
10/19 - Online Learning Day
10/20 - Student Holiday
11/8 - Picture Retake Day
11/8 - Chamber Music Concert
11/8 - Family Connect Night
11/16 - Symphonic Band
11/20-11/24 - Thanksgiving Break

English-Language Arts News

In 7th Grade ELA, students have been working hard on collecting evidence of character traits from our reading of Peak and the nonfiction article "To the Top of Mt. Everest" . These character traits will be used in an essay on the writing prompt of "how does one overcome adversity in the face of overwhelming obstacles?".

We have discussed what "adversity" and "obstacles" are as well as how the traits they are finding in their reading could help someone in difficult times.

Students will begin developing a thesis statement for their essay as well as develop an introductory paragraph, body paragraphs, and concluding paragraph with the evidence they have found to support their thesis.

Students are also learning about proper sentence structure and types as well as MLA Parenthetical citation which will be used in their writing.

These informational essays will be due on November 16 before Thanksgiving Break.

Math News

7th Grade Math is working on Ratios, Proportional Relationships, Slope, and Statistical Reasoning!

Below are the upcoming assessment dates. Please continue to check Canvas for any updates.

7th Grade Math: 11/15- Unit Rate, Proportions, Constant of Proportionality Test
7th Grade Advanced Math: 11/2- Slope Test
7th Grade Accelerated Math: 11/3- Statistical Reasoning Test

What do you get if you divide the circumference of a jack-o-lantern by its diameter? “Pumpkin Pi!”

Life Science News

7th Grade Science is continuing with Unit 3: Human Body Systems! See below for upcoming notable dates:

Friday, November 10 – Start Unit 3 Summative Project
Thursday, November 16 – Unit 3 Summative Project Due Date
Wednesday, December 13 – Science Midterm Exam

A Science Joke: Where do hippos go to university? Hippocampus.

Social Studies News

This week we began the history section of our Middle East unit. Students took a quiz on the Fall of the Ottoman Empire this Friday.

We will be discussing U.S. presence in the Middle East over the next few weeks.
We finish the Middle East unit right before Thanksgiving break.
The test is tentatively scheduled for November 17th.

Enrichment News

7th grade enrichment classes will be covering the following over the next two weeks:

We will finish examining the play version of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

Students will analyze the main characters and plot elements in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

We will begin listening to the podcast The Hollow. Students will examine setting, characters, plot elements and working on their summarizing skills.

Connections News

Healthcare Science:

6th and 7th grade will be completing a HOSA scavenger hunt.

8th Grade will explore how participation win a CTSO like Hosa can promote lifelong community service and leadership through project based learning.

HOSA's chapter meetings will be held on

November 2, 2023 8th Grade only
November 16, 2023 7th and 6th Grade only

Flex times are also available weekly to work on competitive events. If you have any questions, please email Mrs. Kauffman at f22003@forsyth.k12.ga.us

DECA:

Deca had 40 members volunteer to take the Middle School Marketing DECA State Test!

Two students placed in the top 10 and the remaining students placed in the top 50!

Way to go Eagles!

Congratulations to …

Sherya Nambiar South Forsyth Middle School placed 2nd

Keerthi Rajesh South Forsyth Middle School placed 5th

These wonderful students have earned a GA DECA Medal and will be recognized on the big stage at State CDC in February.

Art:

Upcoming Club Meeting Dates:

11/2/23 - 7th /8th Grade Art Club
11/9/23 - 6th Grade Art Club
11/14/23 - Calligraphy Club
11/16/23 - 7th /8th Grade Art Club
11/28/23 - Calligraphy Club
1/30/23 - 6th Grade Art Club

Any students 12 and older wishing to enter the Scholastic Art Awards (a nationally recognized art competition for students) can come by the Art Room 525 and talk to Ms. Shoemake for more information.

Band:

November 8, Chamber Music Concert in the SFMS cafeteria 7:00 PM.

November 11, Symphonic Band Rehearsal, 9:00 AM-1:00 PM

November 13, Mock All-State Audition #1, SFMS Band Room, after school

November 15, Mock All-State Audition #2, SFMS Band Room, after school

November 16, NEXUS Concert at SFHS with the Symphonic Band

Drama:

The 8th Grade Advanced Theatre Class will be presenting our One Act performance of Shuddersome: Tales of Poe on October 27th at 7pm and October 28th at 1:00pm. Tickets are available on GOFAN.

The 7th Grade Advanced Theatre Class will be presenting our One Act performance of Hoodie on November 11th at 2:00pm and 6:00pm. Tickets are available on GOFAN.

Cheerleading tryouts for the Basketball Season will be Monday, October 23rd, Tuesday, October 24th, and Wednesday October 25th. Please contact Ms. Phillips with any questions or concerns at rophillips@forsyth.k12.ga.us

Counseling Corner

As the weather gets cooler and our outdoor activities become more limited, this would be an opportune time to assess how much time your 7th grader is spending on Technology. Balance is key, but many tweens & teens spend an unhealthy amount of their time on devices which can affect their overall physical and mental health. Supervision on the devices can also be tricky. Most teens will not willingly set boundaries for themselves or respond positively to the boundaries set by caregivers. Please look at some suggestions to explore below:

Cell Phone Contract Ideas

Technology Supervision Ideas

I had a wonderful time connecting with the students on the field trip to Chattahoochee nature Center! In the weeks to come, I will be offering some flexes to provide more opportunities to connect with our fabulous 7th graders! As always, feel free to reach out with any questions.

Nurse Notes

As we enter cold and flu season, we would like to remind families when to keep your student home from school. Please visit this link to read about when it is recommended your child stay home. Thank you for helping to keep all our students and staff safe and healthy by following these guidelines!

PTO Updates:

Own a local business and want to support the PTO as a teacher lunch sponsor or community partner?
- - - We have various opportunities to spotlight our local/ community businesses. If you are willing to donate food, gift cards, please email us at ptosfms@gmail.com

Parent Volunteer Opportunities:

Sign up HERE if you would like to volunteer throughout the school year.
We love our SFMS teachers! To our new parents, Welcome!! Each month we try to do something special to let our teachers know all of their hard work is appreciated! This first 1/2 of the year we would like to cover lunch duty on the following dates with volunteer parents:
- - - Nov 17-Cross Country Mortgage, LLC providing lunch
    - Dec 7-South Forsyth Middle School providing Coffee Bar

Volunteers stand in the cafeteria for an hour and let the kids know when to head back to class. You will be with 7 other volunteers and maybe get to embarrass your child! It is super easy! This gives the teachers a quiet time to enjoy lunch and it is a much appreciated way to give back. If you can’t come during school hours, please consider donating soft drinks for our teachers. You can send these in with your student and drop off at the main office. There is a slot for these on the sign up as well.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080944AEAC28A4FB6-sfms25

SPONSOR Thank You:

Thank you to our October Teacher Lunch Sponsor, Concrete Craft of North Atlanta, established in 2017 and providing new and resurfaced concrete driveways, pool decks, walkways, basements, sport courts and more